On 1st May 1918 this No.4 (Auxillary) School of Aerial Fighting and Gunnery aeroplane was being flown on a training flight around the Marske area when the pilot attempted to pull out of a dive while flying too fast and the forces on the aeroplane was so great that the wings and tail broke away. It crashed near Marske and the pilot was sadly killed.
Pilot - Lt Richard Geoffrey Tunbridge RAF, aged 20. Buried Great Garmouth Old Cemetery, Norfolk.
Richard Tunbridge was born on 10th November 1897 and as a young man he worked as a marine engineer at Great Yarmouth. He appears to have enlisted for Royal Flying Corps service in Summer 1917 and was granted a commission to the rank of Second Lieut on 29th August 1917. He initially trained at No.12 Training Squadron then No.69 Training Squadron. He transferred to the RAF when it formed on 1st April 1918 and was then posted to No.4 (Auxillary) School of Aerial Fighting and Gunnery on 24th April 1918.
Back to yearly selection.